Here at Dogster, there’s always talk of the importance of point of view — how, without standing up and championing something, a publication fails to stand for anything at all.

Given this, we are often asked what our point of view is, and usually, it’s not simple to articulate. Not because we have no point of view at Dogster and Catster; quite the contrary. At Dogster HQ, we are fiercely opinionated when it comes to dog and cat issues, so it’s difficult to just pick one and say “There, that’s what we stand for,” and call it a day.

The below five things don’t come close to addressing Dogster‘s stand on every last dog issue out there, but these are five messages we believe are important.

5 Things We Believe at Dogster

1. A dog is not an “it” or a “that.” A dog is a “who.”

While we haven’t been wild and flashy about this particular point of view, it’s the undercurrent in every story you’ll read on the site. Are we saying dogs are people? Not exactly, but you can’t deny they are sentient individuals with distinct personalities.

2. We care immensely about where you get your next pet, and we think you should care, too.

Our stand here at Dogster is to educate rather than bully people about their choices when it comes to where they get their next dog. We are against puppy mills and any situation where dogs are in less than thrive conditions.

3. We champion adoption. And we support responsible breeders.

Adoption is woven into Dogster‘s DNA. We are completely behind the adoption message. Some of our favorite people run some of the most amazing, inspiring rescues we know. But just because we love adoption and frequently champion it in our articles doesn’t mean we are instantly vehemently anti-breeder. We are staunchly anti-irresponsible breeder, it’s true, but we also support those who have dedicated their lives to the betterment of the particular breeds who have won their hearts.

4. We believe harming dogs is criminal and should be condemned by society as such.

Gandhi said, “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” We at Dogster believe we have a long way to go as a society based on this alone.

5. We believe we can help you become a better pet parent (or owner or slave or chief of staff … whatever you want to call yourself).

Dogster‘s editorial is a work in progress, and one of the things we’re trying to do daily between the cute photos, opinion items, lifestyle features, behavior and health tips and dog news is provide readers with solid advice from experts. We know our readers encompass everybody, from beginners to seasoned pet pros, and our mission is to have items of interest to both the enthusiast and the novice.

Anyway, there you have it. These are our values here at Dogster. We’d love to hear what your values are when it comes to your dogs or cats, or pets in general.